Hermeticulture

After all the heaviness of the last couple of posts, I figured you could use a unicorn chaser.  But I was all out of unicorns, so have a Grumpy Cat instead.  (If you know the source, fill me in so I can share!)

In part one of this article, I examined the difficulties inherent in defining magic, and asked whether we really need define it at all.  I then proceeded to evaluate the definitions of magic given by Aleister Crowley, Aaron Leitch, and Kathy McDonald, and pointed out the definitional challenges that were present in each of the three. While the preceding critique may be enlightening, however, it is ultimately worth relatively little unless it propels us toward a more helpful definition of magic.  It is easy to critique the work of others, but far more difficult to create a compelling offering of one’s own.  So in that spirit, I’ll go ahead and put myself on the chopping block as well.  As I mentioned in my last post, my own previous attempts to define magic have been just as problematic as others I’ve seen, and I expect that this attempt will be no different.  But I’m both stubborn and optimistic, so I’m going to try nonetheless. Laying the Foundation When I try to conceptualize